Unlike my previous trips, I didn’t write any blog entries while travelling. Instead I am doing it afterwards. That is, now. Three days after I have arrived back at home. It didn’t feel complete without writing at least something and preserving these memories for the future (and future me). So that is what I’m doing now.

This trip, Odyssey IV (number 4, for everyone who can’t read Roman Numerals), led me to the far north-west of Europe. Iceland to be specific. I haven’t been to that country before and doing it in the summertime is a great idea, because then it’s at least not freezing, but instead just slightly above freezing. Even though I only visited one country (tecnically two, but we’ll get to that), I was away from home for three weeks. That’s because I went to Iceland by ferry and not by plane. Like any sane person would do. This ferry takes a bit longer than a plane. 50 hours, to be a bit more precise. So yeah, I needed a bit of time for this journey. Oh and I nearly forgot the most important part: I took my bike with me. Not a motor bike, a bicycle.

Why? Because I like riding my bike and I don’t have a car. And because I very much liked the idea of riding my bike in such a faraway place. I was leaving myself open to the option of it being a total disaster of an idea, but I was curious to find out. My plan initially consisted of wanting to circumnavigate the island of Iceland with my bike. This would be a route of about 1.500 km for which I had about ten days of time. This window of time was given by the ferry arriving and leaving again. This plan seemed a bit too unrealistic even my most optimistic brain cells, so I scrapped it and opted for a trip from Seyðisfjörður in the east (this is where the ferry docks) to Reykjavík in the west. I would then complete the rest of the circle by bus. This would leave me with a distance of about 660 km to cover in six to seven days, which seemed a bit more manageable.

Another important thing I haven’t fully mentioned yet, is the second country I would visit during this trip: The Kingdom of Denmark. Firstly because the ferry departs from Denmark, but mostly because it stops at the Faroe Islands – which are a part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Taking the opportunity, I will spend a few days on the Faroe Islands as well. Because why not. Not a new country, but they are on the way. And they seem cool.

So, on the 1st of September my journey started by putting all the stuff I needed – my bike bags, tent, mattress and sleeping bag (those three were also featured in Odyssey I whoo, comeback!) on my bike and taking a train up north. Actually first to the south, Lübeck to Hamburg, but after that I headed north in a train! And another, and another. Felnsburg, Kolding and Aarhus were the destinations for today. The latter of which was were I would stay one night. Not because I neccessarily wanted to be in Aarhus, but because it had a nice hostel and I couldn’t make it to Hirtshals (where the ferry departs) in one go since it leaves in the morning of the 2nd of September. And so, my first stop was Aarhus. I had a plan and I was filled with excitement, a fair amount of anxiety and plans just as much as my bike bags where filled with all my stuff. It was a real logistical challenge.

Roberta’s Society was the name of the hostel I stayed at. Very fancy. Aarhus surprised me as well. The way from the train station to the hostel was very beautiful! So there’s that. And it was – weirdly enough – the first time I rode a bike outside of Germany. That was quite a realization.

Either way, I had a night of mid-quality rest and was hoping, that everything would work out and that I would make it to the ferry on time. More on that in the next one.

But for now, thank you for reading!

Tak!

–Louis